Important, Big Changes to All LiveTalks in Online Courses in CoursePlus
Starting with the Summer Institute term of AY19-20, all LiveTalks in online courses at the School are changing to use a new tool called Zoom. Zoom is the industry-leading videoconferencing platform. The entire University, not just the School, is moving to Zoom this coming academic year.
Zoom has a very different focus of interaction from Adobe Connect, which was previously used for LiveTalks. Zoom puts video —video of faculty, students, and the desktop — front and center. Chat is available in Zoom, but it is diminished within the user interface. Zoom expects all participants to be seen and heard throughout a session.
Zoom provides excellent quality video and a super simple setup that's superior to what was provided in Adobe Connect. Zoom makes it very easy for everyone to participate via audio and video. Unlike Adobe Connect, Zoom also offers recordings that are both downloadable and play back on mobile devices.
In the coming year, CTL will offer multiple trainings each term for faculty and TAs on how to effectively run a LiveTalk via Zoom. CTL will also provide on-demand training videos for the basic management of a Zoom session. Details on both of these training opportunities will be forthcoming. The instructional design team in CTL is also happy to work with faculty on planning for this change and, potentially, rethinking how you run your LiveTalk sessions. Students will also have multiple opportunities through the end of the calendar year to participate in Zoom training sessions.
We're very excited about the possibilities for improved interaction during LiveTalks that Zoom enables. We're happy to answer any questions you have now. The whole CTL team will be in touch in the coming months to provide you more details and lots of support for this change.